Chicago Blackhawks GM has much on to-do list

Draft is Friday; Martin Havlat and Nikolai Khabibulin contracts up

June 24, 2009|By Chris Kuc, Tribune reporter

General manager Dale Tallon headed to Montreal to address the Blackhawks' future -- both short- and long-term.

Tallon and his staff are preparing for this weekend's NHL entry draft, but before they make their first-round selection (No. 28 overall) Friday night, the GM will talk to the agents for free agents Martin Havlat and Nikolai Khabibulin.

The veterans both are unrestricted and have indicated they would like to return to the team that reached the Western Conference finals before falling to the Detroit Red Wings. Havlat's return is Tallon's most pressing matter, and time is beginning to run short with the opening of free agency July 1. That's when the winger, who had a career-high 77 points (29 goals, 48 assists) this season, is expected to receive formal interest from a number of teams.

"We have time," Tallon said Tuesday. "You don't get any merit points for signing early. We want him to come back. He has stated that he wants to come back. We just have to do what makes sense for the long-term plan for the Blackhawks."

Tallon planned to meet with Havlat's agent, Allan Walsh, Tuesday night or Wednesday and said he would "like to get something done this week." The sticking point could be length of the deal, as the Hawks must reserve money for after next season when they will need to re-sign Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith, among others. Havlat just completed a contract that paid him $6 million per season.

As far as Khabibulin, Tallon said he spoke with Jay Grossman, the goaltender's agent, Monday and also will meet with him in Montreal.

"We'll see what it's going to cost," Tallon said of re-signing Khabibulin, who completed a deal that paid him $6.75 million per season. "It all comes down to the [salary] cap and how much money we have. It's time maybe for our young guys to step up; [Antti] Niemi and [Corey] Crawford to battle. We have confidence in our goaltending depth, so we'll see."

The Hawks also have a number of key players who are restricted free agents, including Dave Bolland, Cam Barker, Ben Eager, Troy Brouwer and rookie-of-the-year finalist Kris Versteeg.

"We're still negotiating with all of them; we have their rights," Tallon said. "We're slowly but surely chipping away at getting guys signed.

"There are challenges ahead. We're going to do everything in our power to make our team better."

To that extent, Tallon didn't rule out the possibility of signing former defenseman Chris Chelios, who was told by the Red Wings on Monday that he would not return with Detroit after 10 years there. The Chicago native was a mainstay with the Hawks during the 1990s and at 47 is the NHL's oldest player.

"I'm sure Chris will be calling and I'm sure we'll be talking," Tallon said. "We have other things to take care of before we get into that. I love Chris, he's a great guy. He might help our young guys, who knows? We haven't discussed anything with anyone yet."